Angela Hartnett: ‘My husband is a better chef than me. He has a little extra edge’
Lotte Brundle meets the chef, restaurateur and podcast host.
Angela Hartnett has been busy. Managing Michelin-starred Murano and its cafe offspring is a full-time job, as is cooking at Wimbledon, Royal Ascot, Formula 1, Henley Regatta and Sugrue South Downs. It is at the latter, a vineyard in Haywards Heath, where we meet. She and her husband are both investors in the wine here, which pairs brilliantly with the three-course meal Angela has prepared — a fresh tomato and tuna salad, beautifully cooked lamb and roasted plums with cream for dessert.
This is part of a series of wine and lunch events hosted at Sugrue South Downs, and feels almost exactly being a guest on Dish, the podcast she hosts with Nick Grimshaw, where she cooks a bespoke three-course menu for each of their celebrity guests and explains why she has chosen each course. ‘The stressful part is making sure you deliver, because you’re in the lap of the gods always,’ Angela says of these pop-up events, where she’s removed from the comfort of her usual kitchens. ‘But the pressure is what I get a kick out of.’
Angela with Nick Grimshaw, her 'Dish' co-host.
Outside The Connaught in 2005.
The chef trained under Gordan Ramsay and was formerly Chef-Patron at Angela Hartnett at the Connaught, where she gained her first Michelin star in 2004. As well as her London restaurants, Angela has a restaurant in France, Cucina Angelina in Courchevel.
She was born in Kent, but was raised in Upminster, London. Angela’s interest in Italian food came at a formative age. Her Italian grandmother cared for her a lot as a child and it was in Italy, where Angela was working for a year as an 18-year-old au pair, where her heritage and her culinary tastes began to intertwine. She gained a history degree from Cambridge Polytechnic, now known as Anglia Ruskin University, before pursuing a career in hospitality.
It was in Cambridge, working in a hotel, that Angela learned how to cook, before going on to work at the Sandy Lane Hotel restaurant in Barbados. Returning to London, she trained at Ramsay’s restaurant Aubergine alongside Marcus Wareing, after which she became Wareing’s sous chef at his restaurant Petrus. She appeared on Hell’s Kitchen and MasterChef, and has an OBE.
Raised in London, a lot of Angela's cooking pays homage to her Italian heritage.
With husband, the chef Neil Borthwick.
Angela often works with her husband, the chef Neil Borthwick. ‘Neil’s a great chef. He’s just brilliant,’ she gushes. ‘I mean, I always say Neil’s a better chef than me, and I genuinely mean that. He has a little extra edge.’ She elaborates: ‘Recently we were cooking something that I would have served with a simple bit of lemon and sauce, but Neil served it with a Japanese spice and it elevated it all. That’s the difference between me and Neil. I’ll still make it taste delicious, but Neil will just give it that extra something.’
Your aesthetic hero
Someone like Hockney, at the moment. He made art approachable. Another person I would say is Elizabeth David. She was an Italian-American cookery writer who wrote with such a brilliant ability.
David Hockney in 2015.
An exhibition that has really impressed you
The one that I always go to is the RA Summer Exhibition. I love it. Last year I bought a picture from there. It was of ladies eating chips in Pimlico, and it was just such a brilliant photograph. You can find different gems there.
The last thing of note that you bought for yourself
Probably clothes. I bought a nice dress, because I had to wear something. I’m not into clothes, but I’ll buy them if I have to. I’d love to basically be like Steve Jobs or Barack Obama, where you wear the same thing day in, day out.
Apart from that, there’s an amazing shop on Columbia Road called Vintage Heaven and I found these old antique snail plates and bought those for me and Neil to have for the house.
Your favourite painting
I suppose it depends. I think it changes, doesn’t it? I mean, you can go to the National Gallery and see something like Titian, and then you can go to a modern art gallery and see something by Tracey Emin. I think it always changes for me.
'The Supper at Emmaus' by Titian.
A possession you’d never sell
I've got some earrings I bought from a place in New York, when I first earned a big salary. I suddenly thought, ‘Oh, I'm earning a bit of money now,’ and I bought some vintage diamond earrings. So those and my grandmother's ring which was given to me.
A book that has inspired you
I love Christopher Brookmyre and Ian Rankin, both Scottish authors. I love Austen and I think she’s wonderful too. Pride and Prejudice is still one of my favourite novels. And also Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger.
The music that you work to
I do and I don’t. I love Mark Ronson and I love Raye at the moment. I also saw Lola Young the other night and I think she’s great too.
Raye performing at Leeds Festival last month.
The last podcast you listened to
The Rest is Football. I’m an Arsenal fan.
Who would play you in a film of your life
Susan Sarandon. I think she’s amazing, though she’s lovely looking. I'm not nearly as attractive. She’s a class actor.
Susan Sarandon at the Deauville American Film Festival this month.
What you’d take with you to a desert island
I’d probably take music. If I was able to take a radio, that would be great.
The thing that gets you up in the morning
These days I don’t know if it’s menopause, or age, or whatever, but I seem to be waking up at 5:30am. The dogs really are what get me up though, and I don’t mind that, you get out of the house and get some exercise — so that’s good.
The items you collect
China and pottery. And antique cookery books — first edition preferred.
A hotel you could go back and back to
Le Bristol in Paris. We went there for Gordon Ramsay’s 40th birthday.
The most memorable meal you’ve ever eaten
To me, it's not about the food on the table, it's about who you're with and what you're doing. But, I've said it many times, it's got to be a family Christmas. We all went to Italy, we went to the local restaurant, they made us anellini, we had pork, veal, tiramisu, all the local wines. It was snowing when we came outside, and we were up in the mountains. It was just with my uncle, my aunt, my mum, my brothers and my sister, and it was brilliant. The food was amazing, simple but amazing. It was a great environment and to me, my best meals are always with my family. Family and friends.
The best present you’ve ever received
A good recent present Neil bought me was a face cream for Christmas. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t initially wowed by it as a gift, but actually I’ve been using it and lots of people have said: ‘Your skin is looking really great.’
Angela Hartnett is an investor in Sugrue South Downs. For more information visit their website.
